Delhi govt appeals for cracker-free Diwali

Carrying messages, ‘say no to crackers’, the school children held a rally — flagged off by Imran Hussain — who lauded their participation in the campaign

NEW DELHI: The Delhi government on Friday appealed to the people to celebrate a cracker-free Diwali to prevent the pollution level in the air from increasing.

As part of its comprehensive roadmap to combat air pollution during the winter months, Health Minister Satyendar Jain and Environment Minister Imran Hussain inaugurated an anti fire cracker campaign in the Presentation Convent School here.

Carrying messages, “say no to crackers”, the school children held a rally — flagged off by Hussain — who lauded their participation in the campaign.

“Children are the best communicators for making the anti fire crackers campaign highly successful,” Hussain said.

“Eco-clubs of around 2,000 schools and colleges in Delhi are playing an active role on various environment issues. These eco-clubs during Diwali are adequately sensitised for discouraging people from the bursting of fire crackers,” an official release issued here said.

The Delhi government’s Environment Department, Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), Revenue Department and the Delhi Police are together working and spreading awareness about the campaign of not bursting crackers.

“The departments are informing the citizens about the alarming air pollution levels observed during Diwali season due to bursting of fire crackers especially illegally imported or Chinese crackers,” it said.